Barren
by Sanguinary
Summary: Sam becomes a Vampire and must deal with not only his new identity, but his constant hunger for his friends. Slash F/S, M/P, vamp!Hobbits.
1. Sepulchral

TITLE: Sepulchral  
AUTHOR: Sanguinary  
COPYRIGHT: May 7, 2002  
DISTRIBUTION: Want? Ask and receive. Otherwise the vampire plotbunnies will chew your ankles off. And they're vicious buggers.  
RATING: PG 13  
CATEGORY: Horror, Vampires, some slashy subtext  
SPOILERS: Two Towers  
DISCLAIMER: Sam, Frodo, Gollum and Mordor not mine. Though I think that I may be living in The Brown Lands.   
FEEDBACK: Makes me squeal with joy: Sanguinary_515@hotmail.com   
SUMMARY: Sam believes that something else may be causing Frodo to grow weaker and weaker, something as dark and evil as the ring. Something to do with the bite marks at the base of Frodo's throat.  
  
~  
  
Sam first noticed the bite marks two days after they entered the marsh.  
  
The marks on the base of Frodo's throat were tiny and barely noticeable. Most ordinary Men would have missed them. But Sam had the double blessing being both a Hobbit and possessing keen eyes.   
  
There were two small round marks, both a light red colour, on the left side of Frodo's neck. He didn't even seem to notice that they were there and paid them no mind, except for the occasional rub, as if they itched. Sam didn't know what they meant or when they had appeared, but he had an idea of what was behind them.  
  
Or rather who.   
  
He fixed his eyes on the sleeping form of Gollum. The beastly thing was curled up on his side, motionless. Sam couldn't remember seeing Gollum breath once since they first met him. There was something unnatural about Gollum; the way he moved, the way he spoke and never breathed. And there was a constant question in the back of Sam's mind, a question that he believed he may have finally answered:  
  
What did Gollum eat in the barren land of Mordor?  
  
Sam knew what a Vampire was. The only stories more widely told in the Shire were those containing Elves and Dragons. Sam cursed his bad luck to find himself in the company of a Vampire, so far away from wood to make stakes. He could try to pull Gollum into the sunlight during the daytime but whenever he so much as stirred a muscle during the day, Gollum would open his watery eyes and watch Sam.   
  
Frodo moaned softly in his sleep and pressed against Sam's stomach. Gollum opened one eye and glared at both of the small Hobbits. Sam stared back, suspicion rising in his chest and he draped one arm over Frodo's chest. The hairless creature laying a little ways away smiled at Sam, baring wickedly pointed teeth. Sam noticed two particularly pointy teeth, set in the front of Gollum's mouth. But before he could get a closer look, Gollum snapped his mouth shut and got to his feet.   
  
"Where are you going?" Sam sat up but stayed close to Frodo.   
  
"We needs to eat," Gollum hissed, "Can't eat nasty elf food. Must have something to eat." He looked hungrily at Sam and Frodo, "Must find something to eat." Gollum skulked towards the edge of the dirt island they had stopped to sleep on. The mists surrounding the island were thick as curtains.   
  
"There's nothing living out here in this marsh beside us."  
  
"We knows…" Gollum smiled thinly and disappeared into the mists. Sam cursed quietly for having let Gollum out of his sight. Sighing, he lied down beside Frodo and fell into an uneasy sleep.  
  
He awoke some time later, aware that Frodo was no longer pressed against him. Sam blinked sleepily and looked around. There on the edge of the clearing was Gollum with Frodo in his arms. Gollum's head was buried in the crook of Frodo's neck and, had Frodo's body not been slack, Sam could have thought that Gollum was kissing Frodo. But even from across the clearing, Sam could hear the slurping noises as Gollum drank his fill.  
  
"Hey!" Sam shouted, rushing to his feet. Hatred filled his very being: hatred at himself for not keeping better watch and hatred for Gollum who had waited until Sam was asleep before sneaking over to steal Frodo and suck life out of him. Gollum dropped Frodo to the ground at the sound of Sam's shout. The wretched creature's mouth was covered in a ring of red blood and he hissed at Sam's interruption.   
  
Gollum dashed off into the mist and Sam quickly followed, only taking time to check that Frodo was still alive and to borrow Sting. "I promise to return soon, Mr. Frodo," Sam whispered, "But first I have to deal with this beast."  
  
Gollum didn't travel far into the marsh before Sam caught up with him. Sting didn't fit quite right in Sam's hand and he swung it a few times, trying to get used to its weight. Sam wasn't certain about what he was doing, having only fought against a couple of Ringwraiths and a few Orcs before. But he knew that he'd figure out something. Gollum crouched just in front of Sam, daring him to make the first move.   
  
Sam swung at Gollum with Sting, slicing the air. Gollum dodged backwards nimbly, hopping just out of reach.   
  
"Fight you coward!" Sam swung again. This time he managed to smack Gollum upside the head with the flat edge of the sword. Gollum staggered backwards, screaming in pain. A bright red burn mark appeared on the top of Gollum's head, almost as if Sting had scalded him.   
  
Gladden by this, Sam charged again, aiming for Gollum's head. But Gollum was expecting the attack this time. He darted to the side and circled behind Sam. Before Sam could turn around, Gollum leapt again, this time slamming his weight down on Sam's back, knocking him to the earth. Sam landed full force on his chest, knocking all of the air out of his body. Sting fell out of his hand and landed a few feet away. But all Sam could see was mud as Gollum pressed Sam deeper into the wet dirt.  
  
Sam struggled to breath, getting only mouthfuls of dirt. Finally, he managed to get enough strength to flip himself over on his back. He coughed and sucked in air at the same time, almost choking himself in the process.   
  
Before his eyes had a chance to clear, Sam felt a weight settle on his chest. Hot, rotten breath washed up against Sam's face.  
  
"Though he could kill us? Nasty Hobbit! We'll teach the cruel Hobbit a lesson."   
  
Sam opened his eyes and stared up at the contoured face of Gollum. His green eyes were a bright red and his two longer front teeth were bared in a mocking smile. Sam's arms were pinned to the ground by Gollum's surprisingly strong arms. Struggling, Sam flailed his body around and opened his mouth to shout for Frodo. But in a movement so fast that Sam could barely follow it, Gollum's head shot forward into Sam's throat and bit down. A burning sensation filled Sam with pain, and he felt his blood being pulled out of his body and into Gollum's mouth.  
  
Desperately, Sam tried to move his arms and legs but they were immobile, held to the ground by Gollum's body. Panicking, Sam did the only thing that he could.  
  
He bit Gollum's exposed shoulder.  
  
Blood gushed out of Gollum's body, flooding Sam's mouth. He couldn't get any air into his lungs and he began to gag from the amount of fluid entering his mouth. Sam swallowed involuntary, again and again until his mouth was clear enough for him to suck in a breath of air. As his burning lungs filled with blessed air, Gollum scrabbled off of Sam, hissing in pain.   
  
Sam became aware that something was wrong with his body. His breaths were shallow and quick, his heart racing quicker than it should but even so, he felt empty and cold. Sam stared dumbly at Gollum, his brain shutting down bit by bit.   
  
"What…?" He managed to spit out. A look of fear came over Gollum.  
  
"Can't let Master finds you. We can't get in troubles." Two hands gripped Sam's ankles and dragged him off. Sam watched the marsh slide by though fuzzy eyes. His sight was beginning to fade off. He felt his hands flutter uncertainly, clenching and unclenching.   
  
Sam passed out for a short while and when he opened his eyes again, he was lying in a shallow pit. It was almost impossible to breath and every new breath was harder to take than the last. Above him, Gollum stared at Sam with glowing red eyes.  
  
"Frodo…" Sam whispered. Gollum shoved a clod of dirt into the shallow pit. Though he was still conscious, Sam didn't understand what was happening. He tried to raise his hand but there seemed to be no strength left in his body. Just trying to look around was draining him of the little strength he had left.   
  
A clod of dirt landed on top of Sam's head, causing him to close his eyes. Blackness overtook Sam and he floated into unconsciousness.   
  
The first thing that Sam became aware of when he awoke was that he was surrounded by an utter lack of light. He had been in darkness before, but never so totally into it that he could not distinguish anything at all. It pressed down on him and it took Sam a moment to realize that it really was pressing down. His brain, slow and lethargic from his sleep, finally realized what had happened to him and what was causing the darkness.  
  
He had been buried alive.   
  
This jump-started his brain and Sam began to breath faster. But though there was no air in the grave he had been placed in, he was able to keep conscious without breathing. Slowly he calmed down and began feeling around his grave.   
  
The dirt surrounding him was mostly loose and easy to shove away from his body. He began to dig a hole upwards, towards what he hoped was air and escape. Dirt gently covered his face, clogging his nose and mouth. But Sam had begun to remember what had happened to him and why he was buried beneath the ground.  
  
One hand broke though the ceiling of the shallow grave, followed by another and then by a head. Sam shook the dirt off of his head and looked around. It was night and the moon was half-hidden by the mist above the marsh. But Sam could see perfectly, almost as if it were the middle of the day. He pulled himself out of his grave and brushed the dirt off of his body. He took in a breath of fresh air, felt it fill his lungs and exit just as quickly. He knew he was dead. Sam had always been able to feel his own heart beat by just closing his eyes and keeping still for a few moments. But now he couldn't fell the familiar throb inside of his chest.   
  
"Gollum…" Sam hissed between clenched teeth, "If I find one hair on Frodo's head touched, you'll be soon finding out how nasty Samwise Gamgee can get."   
  
He sniffed the air and, for the first time, became aware of the changes that had happened to him while he slept lifeless beneath the ground. His sense of sight, smell and hearing had increased ten-fold. Touch was unbelievably different and just dragging his hands over the ground could have kept him occupied for hours. But the thought of Frodo alone with Gollum weighed upon Sam's mind.   
  
Sam looked around, uncertain of where he was. But there was a scent, like rotten fish and ancient skin, which floated on the air. He sniffed it, feeling it flood his brain. Sam smiled unpleasantly. Gollum had left a trail for him, one that Sam could follow without the use of his eyes.   
  
"Don't worry Mr. Frodo," Sam began to follow the scent though the mists, "Your Sam will find you soon enough."  
  
He soon stumbled across Sting, half buried in mud. Sam was revolted that Gollum had just left the beautiful sword in the dirt and he reached to pick it up. But no sooner had his hands touched the hilt, did they blister and turn red. Sam pulled his hands back hastily and looked at the damage the sword had done. He looked sadly at the half-buried sword and forced himself to carry on, leaving behind Frodo's most valued possession besides the Ring.   
  
Gollum's scent lead Sam across island after island, twisting back and forth though the marsh. In the distance there were faint noises, like the beating of a drum. They were comforting and whenever the scent grew too faint to find, Sam would turn towards the noise and clear his mind so he could better concentrate on following it. Presently, he came across one familiar looking island. He sniffed deeply and felt his nose fill with a new scent, one that was familiar though he could not remember having smelt it before.  
  
It was sweet smelling compared to the rotting of the marsh around Sam. There was a hint of fading sunlight mixed with ink and some spice, rather like cinnamon. The tangy scent of copper lay underneath the other scents. Sam breathed it in, trying to figure out what it reminded him of.  
  
"Frodo." He whispered, smiling. He knew what to follow now. Sam began following the scent, a new determination in his heart.   
  
Sam wandered for what seemed forever though the marsh, never seeming to get closer to the gentle thumping noise in the distance. Finally, half out of despair, half out of anger, Sam began to run along the path in the march, following only the insistent heart beat in the distance. His feet never once stumbled as he ran.   
  
The thumping grew closer and then suddenly, grew frantic and desperate. Sam heard Gollum hiss and Frodo cry out in pain.  
  
"Frodo!" Sam shouted and burst out of the mist and onto the island where Gollum and Frodo were, just in time to see Frodo as he ran away from Gollum, towards Sam's voice. Gollum attacked Frodo from behind, shoving him.   
  
Sam watched Frodo stumble and fall to the ground, Gollum crouching over his fallen form. Fury filled Sam and with an inhobbit scream, he charged Gollum. The slimy creature stared in shock at Sam, frozen above Frodo. Sam slammed into Gollum, knocking them both to the ground.   
  
"Dead!" Shrieked Gollum, "We killed you!"  
  
"Did you think that death would keep me away?" Sam hissed as he smashed Gollum's head into the ground, "Nothing could make me abandon Frodo."  
  
They tussled on the ground for a while, Sam choking Gollum and Gollum scratching Sam's face. Something inside of Sam changed and he felt his face change, becoming twisted and feral. He snarled and slammed his head against Gollum's head.   
  
Bright red eyes glared back at him. "Nasty filthy sneak!" Gollum screamed, flipping Sam onto his back, "It wants our precious! It wants to take our food aways! It…" Gollum suddenly stopped in mid sentence. Sam looked up and saw the point of a piece of driftwood sticking though Gollum's heart. Gollum stayed frozen for a moment and then dissolved into dust, revealing Frodo standing behind him.   
  
"Sam?" Frodo's voice was weak and shaky.  
  
"Frodo!" Sam clambered to his feet and embraced Frodo, "Are you alright?"  
  
"I thought you were dead."   
  
"So did I," Sam buried his head against Frodo's neck. He could feel that blood pounding just below the surface, tempting Sam to bite and drain Frodo. But Sam loved his master too muck to do such a thing.   
  
"I'm glad you're back." Frodo hugged Sam tighter.   
  
"As am I, Frodo." Sam took one more deep breath and stood back. "We should be going now, before we loose anymore time."  
  
"But with Gollum dead, how are we going to find the passage into Mordor."  
  
Sam smelt the air. Gollum's scent was still there, faint but definite. It seemed to lead out of the marsh and, hopefully, straight into the Dark Lord's domain. Once they were past Barad Dur, they'd have no trouble locating Mount Doom. And after that, it would just be a matter of destroying the ring.   
  
"Don't worry. I think I have a way."  
  
"Sam, what happened to your eyes? And your teeth?"  
  
Sam smiled, his new front teeth glinting in the pale light, "It doesn't matter. I'm still your Sam. No matter what, I'll still be yours."  
  
Frodo clung tighter to Sam and cried. Sam rocked him back and forth gently, almost hypnotized by the rhythmic beating of Frodo's heart and the sweet scent of copper just below his skin. The marsh was totally quiet, except for the muffled sound of sobbing.   
  
~End~  



	2. Scar

TITLE: Scar  
AUTHOR: Sanguinary  
COPYRIGHT: June 14, 2002  
DISTRIBUTION: Want? Ask. Sam'll get you if you don't.   
RATING: PG 13  
CATEGORY: Horror, Vampires, some slashy subtext  
SERIES: Barren  
SPOILERS: Two Towers  
DISCLAIMER: Sam, Frodo and Mordor not mine.   
FEEDBACK: Want more vamp!Sam? : Sanguinary_515@hotmail.com   
SUMMARY: Things change after Sam becomes a vampire, mainly in the way that Frodo treats him.   
  
~  
  
Frodo refuses to sleep near Sam. And that hurts Sam worse than anything else could. He could   
handle Frodo carrying that piece of wood around, hidden just beneath his robes. He could handle   
Frodo's looks of disgust when Sam sneaks off to find something to feed off of. But he can't   
stand being forced away from Frodo.  
  
Barad Dur looms on the horizon, just a day's walk away. They were almost caught once when Sam   
stopped to cook some rabbits for Frodo's dinner. But Sam heard the Men approaching and hid   
both of them in a tree. When dark came, Sam snuck off and fed off of one of the guards. The   
blood had left Sam stronger than before but when he returned for Frodo, he found that Frodo   
refused to touch him.   
  
Frodo had never refused to touch him before.   
  
The two tiny marks left by Gollum on the side of Frodo's neck faded away but they left scars   
in their wake. He can't look at them without wanting to sink his own teeth into Frodo's neck   
and make the scars his own. Make Frodo his. But he won't. Frodo is edging away from Sam already   
and Sam hasn't done a thing wrong.  
  
He hates Gollum. But hate seems too mild a word for what he feels. Rage, all consuming loathing   
for the dead creature, now just ashes. He wonders that if Frodo stakes him, if he'll turn into   
ashes as well. Wonders if ashes can still feel and think. Wonders how it would feel to float on   
the breeze for eternity. Wonders if he can ever make Frodo stop hating him.   
  
Hopes that Frodo will stop hating him.   
  
Sam lies awake during the day and watches Frodo breath while he's asleep. The gently motion of   
the chest as it fills and falls. Once, when Sam woke, he caught Frodo staring at him, watching   
the lack of motion in his body. Sam wishes he could be alive, just so Frodo would touch him.   
  
The gently thumping noise of Frodo's heart is a constant reminder to Sam of what he's lost.   
That he'll never feel his heart move again. That he'll never lie in the bright noon sun.   
Already his tanned skin is fading paler and paler. He's almost as white as Frodo.   
  
Frodo's dying. Sam could ignore that fact when he was alive and unable to hear and smell the   
death that Frodo radiates. The Ring is killing him. And Sam knows that he can save Frodo and   
keep him from dying forever. He could make Frodo just like him.   
  
But he won't. Frodo would hate him for doing it. And Sam would hate himself for doing it. He   
loves Frodo (and maybe love isn't a strong enough word for what he feels) and he wouldn't...   
no, couldn't do anything to hurt him. Not ever if it might save him in the end.  
  
So he lies alone, watching Frodo sleep on the far side of the clearing, wishing he could be   
alive. Just so he could touch Frodo.  
  
~fin~ 


	3. Said the Spider

TITLE: Said the Spider  
AUTHOR: Sanguinary  
COPYRIGHT: June 14, 2002  
DISTRIBUTION: Want? Ask. Sam'll get you if you don't.  
RATING: PG 13  
CATEGORY: Horror, Vampires, some slashy subtext  
SERIES: Barren  
SPOILERS: Two Towers  
DISCLAIMER: Sam, Frodo, Shelob and Mordor not mine.   
FEEDBACK: Spawns more vamp!Hobbits: Sanguinary_515@hotmail.com   
SUMMARY: Sam feels the call of Shelob. But will he let his master become a dinner for the   
ancient spider? Does he have a choice?  
  
~   
  
Sam felt the presence before he knew what it was he felt.   
  
Since he had been turned into a vampire, his five senses had improved. But now he was beginning   
to realize that he had a sixth sense as well. He had felt it before, warning him when Frodo was   
going to leave without him. But it had been a faint tingling at the back of his neck then. Now   
it was a full-fledged prickling up and down his spine.   
  
Frodo walked in front of Sam, shivering in the cold night air. His master's dirt smeared face   
was turned away from him, staring at the long climb before them. Sam stayed a bit behind Frodo,   
knowing that his physical presence disturbed Frodo. Normally, he would have been saddened by   
that fact. But the presence of a new mind on the edge of his awareness had disturbed him even   
more.  
  
It came from all around him. Sam could sense the hatred and hunger, radiating from the valley   
below and the caves above. A mind touched his for a moment and Sam almost lost control of the   
beast inside of him.   
  
// come into my parlour...//  
  
The thought touched his mind and then disappeared, making Sam question whether he had felt it   
or not. Something was certain though, there was another creature besides Sauron's armies in   
this mountain, something dark and evil as him though.  
  
They continued to walk until Sam could feel the sun rise. Clouds covered the sky, blocking out   
all light but he could feel the pull of the burning ball of light hidden somewhere in the   
darkness. He sniffed the air and realized that the scent of acidic sweat hung on the air,   
coming from Frodo. His master was exhausted but he refused to rest.   
  
"Let's rest."  
  
Frodo looked at Sam emotionlessly and nodded. They found an opening in the wall with some light   
shelter. They sat down and Sam set their packs together just inside the opening. Frodo inched   
into the opening as deep as he could go and curled up into a ball. Within a few moments, he was   
sound asleep. Sam's heart ached and he wished he could have been curled up beside Frodo's body.  
  
Sighing, he propped his body against the wall and closed his eyes, waiting for sleep to take him.  
  
//Come to me...//  
  
His eyes snapped open and Sam looked around. The thought was stronger and it seemed more of a   
command than a request. Without thinking about it, he got to his feet and began to walk up the   
stairs again. His brain seemed oddly detached from his surrounding, almost as if it was floating   
behind him.  
  
  
After a long climb, he finally came to a huge cavern in the rock face. He sniffed the air and   
drew back as if slapped. Something rotting and dark, and more over, purely evil, radiated from   
that cave.   
  
//Come to me//  
  
Unwilling, he walked into the cave. It was pure darkness with no light from any source but Sam's   
new eyes allowed him to see where no other living creature should have been able. His feet   
carried him deep into the cave, to a huge opening where he couldn't tell where the roof began.   
It was then that he spotted that creature that had been contacting him.  
  
It was a spider but unlike any spider Sam had seen before. As a gardener, Sam had seen a great   
deal of eight legged creatures, but none had been taller than he or as evil looking as the one   
in front of him.  
  
Sam's knees gave out and he collapsed in a quivering heap of dead flesh. The giant spider   
towered over to him, clicking her mandibles.  
  
//Where is the other?// the evil mind touched the edge of Sam's consciousness //Where is my   
servant?//  
  
"Who?" Sam managed to croak out.  
  
The Spider came closer and sent Sam a mental image of a hideous bowing creature fawning before   
Her black presence. A figure that Sam easily recognized.  
  
"Gollum," He spat, though no moisture left his mouth, and looked up at the Spider, "Dead."  
  
The Spider sent a wall of hatred towards Sam, causing him to cry out in pain. //How?//  
  
"Staked."  
  
//By who?//  
  
"My... master," He said though clenched teeth. Her presence overpowered him and forced Sam to   
speak only the truth, no matter whether he wished to or not.  
  
//You are like him.// The Spider drew closer. //You will replace him. Bring your master to me.   
I will feed upon his dying body and you will remain as my servant.//  
  
Sam rose to his knees and stared into the eight glittering eyes. The mind pressed down on him.   
"No." he whimpered.  
  
//Yes//  
  
His voice was stronger, "No."  
  
One giant leg smashed down in the dirt beside his head. //You will bring you master to me.//  
  
The sheer power of Her command ground Sam into the dirt. Precious tears washed down his face,   
leaving streams of dirt in their wake. "Please..." he pleaded.  
  
//Bring him. Tomorrow.//  
  
Unable to look at the beast anymore, a tortured, "Yes." made it's way out of his throat.   
Defeated, he scrambled away from the Spider and fled the cave, her hideous mind echoing within   
his.   
  
Sam didn't remember traveling down the stairs again, he only came to his senses when he reached   
the opening where he had left Frodo.  
  
He found Frodo sleeping in the corner of rock where he had left them. His master's face was   
pale and he breathed shallowly. Something in Sam's heart broke and he reached out, desperate to   
touch the pale skin with his fingers. But as his fingers hovered over the sleeping face, lost   
in dreams of a better place and time, a wind stirred in the dead land and whistled though the   
empty stone corridors. Frodo's eyes snapped open and Sam withdrew his hand quicker than the   
hobbit eye could follow.   
  
"Frodo?" He asked quietly, approaching but no getting to close, "How are you?"  
  
He licked his lips, "Thirsty."   
  
Sam retrieved the half-full canteen from his pack nearby and tipped the water into Frodo's   
mouth. His master swallowed twice before falling into a coughing fit. Sam quickly took the   
water away and brought his hand up to pat Frodo's back. But Frodo shrunk away from Sam and with   
another cough, cleared his lungs.  
  
"Can you walk?" Sam tried to hide the hurt expression that had struggled to the forefront.   
  
Frodo nodded and got to his feet. He picked up his pack and began to walk up the long stairs   
again. Sam picked up his own pack and followed after a moment, part of him feeling something   
akin to hatred towards his master.   
  
Maybe it wouldn't be so hard to feed him to the Spider.   
  
As they climbed higher up the stairs, Sam's mind went under the Spider's control ago, slowly   
this time. As his free will ebbed away, he began to regret his choice to lead Frodo into danger.   
But by the time he realized what his choice meant, his body was not longer his to control.   
  
It belonged to the great spider, Shelob.   
  
They finally arrived at the mouth of the cave. Frodo looked into the gaping darkness silently.   
"Are you sure this is the way?"  
  
Sam felt Shelob move his head; "Gollum's scent leads right into the cave." The words sounded   
normal but Sam hoped that Frodo would notice a difference, any difference. But if Frodo noticed   
a thing, he did not show it. Instead, he strode into the darkness and Sam followed at his heels.   
  
His eyes adjusted at once to the darkness but Frodo's weak hobbit eyes couldn't piece the   
darkness. "Follow my voice." Sam said quietly and began to lead Frodo into the interior of the   
cave.   
  
How long they walked, Sam wasn't sure. All he knew what that he was no longer in control of   
anything he did or said. He was a captive in his own body, trapped by the powerful will of the   
spider.   
  
They emerged into a huge empty cavern, the same cavern Sam had met Shelob in before. The giant   
spider was still there, waiting for them.  
  
//Good work my servant. You shall be rewarded.// She sent him a mental image of the Ring on   
Frodo's hand. Sam was sickened to the stomach. The spider believed that Sam craved the same   
thing as Gollum. But if she had bothered to probe his mind further, she would have seen his   
obsession lay with something else.   
  
The great mind released her grasp on Sam's body and turned her power towards Frodo. Sam reeled   
back and screamed to Frodo, "Pull out the Lady's glass!"  
  
Frodo reached inside his cloak and drew out the glass. For a moment, it just glowed softly and   
then it burst into bright light, blinding everything.   
  
Sam screamed in pain as the light lit the cavern and burnt his skin like the sunlight. Dimly,   
he heard Shelob shriek with pain and flee deeper into the darkness. The same urge to flee was   
surging though Sam's body but he refused to let himself leave his master's side. He had lead   
Frodo into this pit and he would lead him out.  
  
Throwing his cloak over his face, he called out, "Follow me!" and walked towards the scent of   
fresh air. For a moment, Frodo hesitated and then followed.  
  
The period of time between them entering the cave and exiting it was immeasurable to Sam. When   
they finally emerged into the open of Mordor, Sam fell to his knees and stared at the sky.   
Beside him, Frodo stumbled, but did not fall. Swaying, he managed to say on his feet. They   
stayed like that for a few moments before Frodo turned to Sam. He looked at Sam with an   
expression that was indescribable.   
  
Sam tried to find the words to explain what he had done but he couldn't find them. His tongue   
felt heavy and wooden. He opened his mouth to explain and paused, trying to put what he felt   
into words.  
  
"I heard her mind." Frodo said softly, not looking away from Sam. "I know what she promised   
you. Why didn't you take it?"  
  
"I don't want the ring." He said in a hushed voice, "It's not what I want."  
  
For a moment, they just stared at each other. Then, Frodo stepped forward and touched the side   
of Sam's face. The heat of Frodo's body flowed into his cold companion. Sam could feel the   
heartbeat throb though Frodo and pulse gently at his cheek. And as quickly as the touch had   
come, it left.   
  
"I can't touch you." Frodo looked away this time, "I don't hate you. I just can't touch you."  
  
Sam got to his feet and shouldered his pack. "Let's go." He said, his voice husky. And he lead   
the way this time so Frodo couldn't see the red tears that ran down his face.  
  
~fin~ 


	4. Dance on a Volcano

TITLE: Dance on a Volcano   
AUTHOR: Sanguinary  
COPYRIGHT: June 23, 2002  
DISTRIBUTION: Want? Ask. Otherwise, expect to find a vampire hobbit clinging off your ankles.   
RATING: PG 13  
CATEGORY: Horror, Vampires, some slashy subtext  
SERIES: Barren  
SPOILERS: Return of the King  
DISCLAIMER: Everything in the LotRverse not mine.   
FEEDBACK: Spawns more vamp!Hobbits: Sanguinary_515@hotmail.com   
SUMMARY: Sam and Frodo at the lip of Mount Doom. But destroying the Ring may be the easier task   
to complete.   
  
~  
  
The heat is stronger than Sam would have ever imagined it to be. It weighs heavily down on him,   
pressing his body into the dead earth. If he were not a vampire, he would not have the strength   
to pull both himself and Frodo up the mountain. And even with his newly gained strength, he is   
bone tired and about three steps away from total collapse. But the lip of the mountain is within   
his reach now.  
  
Frodo lies on Sam's back, motionless. The gentle thumping noise and slow breaths are the only   
indication that Frodo is not dead. The poor Hobbit is deep in sleep, so deep that he didn't   
even try to pull away from Sam's touch. This worried Sam intensely and he would rest if he   
didn't know that it wouldn't do any good.   
  
The quest must be completed. And when it is, Sam will lie down next to Frodo's cold body and   
they'll both sleep for eternity.   
  
Finally, he steps on the lip of the volcano. His legs are shaking badly but he manages three   
more steps before he collapses. Sam lies on the ground, unable to move a muscle. Presently, he   
remembers Frodo and he gently rolls the too-light Hobbit off his back. Frodo is still asleep,   
his hand clutching the One Ring. The heartbeat has slowed since they started up the mountain   
and his breathing is almost non-existent.  
  
Frodo's dying. And Sam's starving. He hasn't eaten a bit since they left that Orc army and Sam   
managed to take one or two mouthfuls from one of the fallen beasts. It burned his insides but   
the horrible blood had given him the strength to carry on until this point. Now his body called   
for fresh blood. And the only source was Frodo.   
  
Sam shook Frodo gently, willing him to wake from his sleep. It seemed like forever before he   
opened his eyes and stared up at Sam. His face and eyes were pale, like they had been when he   
was suffering from the Mogul blade. "Mr. Frodo." Sam said hoarsely, "We're here Mr. Frodo.   
You've got to throw the Ring into the fires."  
  
Even though he was still aching all over, Sam helped Frodo stand and together, the two Hobbits   
limped towards the abyss. The molten metal churned below them in eager anticipation, glowing   
with an unearthly light. Sam looked at the Ring and saw it glow with the same unearthly light.   
It had returned to its birthplace.   
  
Frodo lifted a hand to the ring and slipped the chain over his head. He held it above the   
burning heat. "Sam..." He said quietly, "I came here to destroy the Ring. But I can't.   
I can't..." Frodo gripped the chain tightly and tears streamed down his sooty face.   
  
Sam reached for Frodo's hand and pried the chain out of it. A sudden strange light lit inside   
of Frodo, "Give to me! It's mine!" He clawed for the Ring but Sam easily brushed aside his   
hands.   
  
He held the Ring up, watching it spiral in the bright light of the volcano. It called to Sam,   
knowing that he was one of the Dark creatures. The Ring whispered promises of power, of jewels   
and gold, of gardens and a world covered in beauty.   
  
"Will you give him back to me?" Sam asked the Ring, "Will you make me alive again?"  
  
The Ring was silent. It could promise many things, but it could not promise life to the dead.   
It could not unmake what its powers had wrought.   
  
Sam flung the Ring into the volcano, oblivious to Frodo's anguished scream. It fell downward   
and Sam watched its movement until it disappeared into the raging liquid below. A distressed   
moan sounded from beside Sam.  
  
He tore his eyes away from the volcano in time to see the light in Frodo's eyes die. The   
smaller Hobbit collapsed, pulling Sam with him. "Frodo!" He screamed, "Frodo!"  
  
But the destruction of the Ring had proved too much for Frodo. Behind him, the volcano began   
to boil with a furious rage as it destroyed the Ring. Calling on the last reserves of strength   
in his body, Sam picked up Frodo and ran down the mountain. His body screamed in pain as he   
struggled down the mountain. The sharp rocks that littered the volcano pierced his feet,   
causing him to stumble. But he never fell, no matter how the stones tore his feet. His head   
throbbed in time with the unearthly pulsing light of the erupting volcano.   
  
Finally, he reached the base of the mountain and they both collapsed. Frodo had stopped   
breathing and now his heart was beginning to give out. "No..." Sam moaned, torn between   
letting Frodo die or cursing him with eternal unlife.   
  
The two red marks on the side of Frodo's neck almost glowed in the dead lights of the   
wastelands. With a snarl, Sam's beast came to forefront, fangs ripping though his gums and   
eyes glowing with an aberrant red light. The hunger of the beast overwhelmed the goodness of   
the Hobbit. He tilted Frodo's head back and bit into his skin, piecing the red marks.   
  
Blood, hot and salty, filled Sam's mouth in a rush. With a moan of pleasure, he drank in long   
gulps, feeling the warmth fill him. The world seemed to shrink and in a moment, there was only   
the body beneath his and the taste of life filling his dead body. He could have continued   
forever just drinking, but the frantic, failing heartbeat reminded Sam of his purpose.  
  
Instinct took over where logic failed. Once, long ago, Smeagol had lain overtop his cousin   
Deagol in the same manner and did nothing. But Sam was not Smeagol and Frodo meant more than   
the world to Sam.   
  
He drew his mouth away from Frodo's neck and, using his teeth, ripped open his own wrist. Sam   
pressed it to Frodo's open mouth, forcing the blood down his throat. "Drink Frodo," He urged,   
tilting the head to allow more to flow in, "Drink!"   
  
Frodo lay with his mouth open, as still and quiet as Sam's heart. Time stretched on forever,   
then Frodo swallowed one, twice and then no more. The heartbeat went on for a little more time   
before finally halting. Sam cradled the body in his arms began to cry, the features of the   
beast within him fading away.   
  
And that's how they were found when the eagle arrived at Mount Doom. Sam refused to let any   
other touch Frodo and they were born on the back of the Gwaihir the Windlord, for no other   
eagle would touch them.   
  
When they arrived in Minas Tirith, Sam and Frodo were quickly taken to the healers. And though   
they tried to take Frodo away, Sam refused to let go of his fallen master. The healers looked   
at Frodo's still form and concluded that they could do nothing. No one of them noticed that   
Sam's form was as still as Frodo's.   
  
When night finally descended, Frodo stirred ever so slightly and opened his eyes, now a dark   
indigo instead of their natural blue.   
  
"Sam," he croaked.  
  
"Yes Frodo?"  
  
"I'm hungry." His eyes fixed on Sam's face, "So hungry." He sat up and pushed away from Sam.   
"What did you do to me?"  
  
"I..."  
  
Frodo's hand reached up and touched the newly opened marks on the side of his neck. The look   
of betrayal in Frodo's eyes was like a slap across Sam's face. "You touched me?" He hissed,   
"Like Gollum did? You made me like him?"  
  
"Frodo, I..." Sam reached out to touch his master.  
  
"Don't." Frodo slipped off the bed and out of Sam's reach. "I trusted you Sam. I trusted that   
you would let me go. I shouldn't have trusted you."   
  
Sam tried to speak but the words wouldn't come. Frodo took one last look at Sam and left the   
room, shutting the door behind him. The moment the door closed, Sam buried his face into his   
hands and cried, bloody tears staining his palms.   
  
~Fins~ 


	5. Flesh to Tear

TITLE: Flesh to Tear   
RATING: PG 13   
CATEGORY: Horror, Vampires, Slash   
PARING: Sam/Frodo, mild Merry/Pippin   
SERIES: Barren   
SPOILERS: Return of the King   
~  
The wood felt strange to Sam's skin.   
  
It wasn't that it burnt him. He simply hadn't felt wood since he had been a living being.   
The grain was harsh against his skin and he imagined how it would feel for it to pierce his   
chest.   
  
Frodo had disappeared into the city four days ago. The Healers hadn't said much of anything,   
just bandaged up Sam's torn wrist and assumed that he had buried the body alone. Not one of   
them had noticed that Sam was different or out of the ordinary. He had listened carefully to   
find out if there had been any unexplained deaths in the last few days. But there was not so   
much as a pet missing besides the ones that Sam had taken. Which could only mean one thing to   
him.   
  
That Frodo was truly gone and beyond even the cursed life that Sam had forced upon his friend.   
  
His heart ached for release. This awful half-life was not worth anything without Frodo. Sam   
pressed the rough wood against the skin overtop his still heart. All it would take was one   
good shove and all his pain and sorrow would be over forever. Just one push...   
  
The door to Sam's room slammed open as Pippin rushed in. Sam dropped the stake in surprise.   
  
"Sam!" Pippin's eyes were red and puffy. He flung himself into Sam's arms and sobbed. "It's   
Merry! He was better but I can't wake him and the Healers say there's nothing they can do to   
help him."   
  
Sam tried to listen to the words but he was enraptured by the sounds of Pippin's beating heart.   
The tiny organ fluttered almost quicker than his mind could follow, sending Pippin's blood   
surging though his veins. The familiar scent taunted him and he had to force himself not to   
sink his fangs into the tender flesh of Pippin's neck. "What's wrong with Merry?"   
  
"They don't know. He's asleep and won't wake up and he hasn't got a fever or anything else like   
it, only two marks on the side of his neck."   
  
Sam froze, a cold feeling spreading up and down his spine. And yet, inside the shell of horror,   
there was a small spark of joy. "Frodo." Sam whispered.   
  
Pippin looked at Sam, confusion marring his face. "Frodo? What about Frodo?"   
  
"I don't have time to explain it to you Pippin, just take me to Merry."   
  
Pippin nodded and led Sam down the twisting hallway. They reached the dim, candle lit room as   
the sun began its descent. Sam could feel its pull on him, waking the beast within. As he felt   
the hunger rise, he cursed his choice not to feed. Pippin smelt like dinner but Sam had lost   
control once before and he would not do so again.   
  
Merry looked nothing like he once had. His golden hair was matted to his head and his breathing   
was shallow. On his neck were the telltale marks of a vampire. But they weren't neat little   
holes like the ones on Frodo and Sam's necks. Instead, they were large torn holes, the kind a   
wild beast would leave.   
  
Pippin walked over to Merry and stroked his hair, "He's won't wake up, no matter what I do."   
  
Sam looked around the room, judging where Frodo could have come from. The door was the obvious   
answer but the thing that had drunk from Merry had not been sane or intelligent but merely an   
animal. As he prowled the room, the answer came to Sam in the form of a smell.   
  
He stopped and crouched by the side of the bed. It was Frodo's scent that whiffed out from   
under it, mixed with the smell of darkness and decay. "Hand me a candle Pippin."   
  
Pippin picked up a taper from the bedside table and handed it to Sam. Using his one hand to   
shield the flame, Sam thrust the candle beneath the bed. There, right beneath Merry, was a hole   
in the stones, leading into the darkness of the room below. Sam ran his hand along the hole and   
found it to be rough and jagged. It could have been made in the past few days by a determined   
savage vampire, seeking familiar blood just above it's sleeping spot.   
  
Sam leaned over the hole and looked down into its dark depths. He thrust the candle into it.   
It lit the dark room, illuminating the dusty piles of shapeless stored items. On the floor, far   
below, a twisted pile of rags lay shoved in the corner. Dead rats littered the floor, the scent   
of their blood rising though the hole. The light also revealed a stone ledge just below the   
hole with a familiar body curled up in sleep. Red glowing eyes blinked, surprised at the   
intrusion of light. Sam had half a second before Frodo clawed his way out of the hole and   
slashed at him. The candle dropped from his hand and rolled across the floor, flickering.   
  
Frodo ripped at Sam's face, forcing Sam back from the bed. He slammed into Pippin and sent   
both of them tumbling towards the wall. Frodo snarled once more and climbed up on the bed,   
crouching beside Merry.   
  
Pippin and Sam got to their feet. "Frodo? But I thought..." Pippin stared open-mouthed at   
Frodo. Sam pushed the younger Hobbit away and stepped towards the bed. Frodo stared up at   
Sam and growled. Sam let his beast emerge from his skin and snarled back in return.   
  
His friend was almost unrecognisable. Four days of not eating and being surrounded by thousands   
of living, breathing beings had taken their toll on Frodo's mind. His clothing was torn and   
ragged, his hair a matted mess. Red eyes glared at Sam and glittering white teeth snapped in a   
rage. Pippin whimpered in fear as his eyes swung from Sam's face to Frodo's face to the   
motionless body lying on the bed below Frodo. "Merry!" He half-moaned, half-choked on the name.   
  
"Stay back Pippin." Sam pushed Pippin gently away from the bed and the animalistic Frodo.   
"I'll get Merry out of there."   
  
Sam crouched down on all fours in a parody of Frodo's position and growled low. Frodo's head   
snapped up and answered back with a snarl.   
  
Sam rolled his shoulders back and rested his weight on the front pads of his feet. Frodo didn't   
notice what Sam was doing. Instead, Frodo lowered his head, about to feed.   
  
Sam lunged at Frodo, slamming into him. They rolled off the bed and landed on the floor, Sam on   
top. "Pippin!" Sam yelled, "Grab Merry and get out of here!" Dazed, Pippin ran towards the bed   
and scooped Merry up in his arms. He paused to stare at Sam. "Just go!" Sam snarled as Frodo   
clawed at his face. He slid up and pressed his knees into Frodo's shoulders, resting his weight   
on Frodo's chest. Pippin ran out of the room and slammed the door shut behind him, leaving   
Sam trapped with the feral Frodo.   
  
Frodo reached up his arms to claw at Sam's face but Sam grabbed Frodo's wrists and pinned them   
to the ground. With a howl of pain, Frodo arched upwards, trying to bite and tear at Sam's   
face. The sharp white teeth snapped dangerously close to Sam's face. In a fit of panic, Sam did   
the only thing he could think of doing. "Forgive me Frodo." Sam said roughly and kissed Frodo,   
forcing both of their heads down. Fangs ground together and warm blood poured out of their   
mouths. Frodo sucked at the blood eagerly and squirmed beneath Sam. A wave of pleasure swelled   
within Sam and he licked at Frodo's bloody lips beneath his. He loosened his grip on Frodo's   
wrists and slid down Frodo's body until his hips were even with Frodo's. The smaller vampire   
nipped at Sam's neck and shoulders, licking the wounds he left.   
  
Sam shuddered as Frodo licked the side of Sam's neck, right on the pulse-less artery. Fresh   
blood lay in both of their veins and Sam could smell the scent of Merry radiating from Frodo's   
body. He buried his head in the side of Frodo's throat, nipping at the point where shoulder met   
neck. Frodo whimpered and arched upwards, grinding his hips into Sam's.   
  
The temptation was too much for Sam and he sank his teeth into the firm skin. Frodo did the   
same. The momentary pain of the bite was overwhelmed with a surge of pleasure as both he and   
Frodo began to drink. Merry's blood was bubbly and light tasting compared to the animal bloods   
Sam had been drinking. But it was Frodo's blood beneath Merry's blood that made Sam suck for   
more. That blood was thick and dark, like an aged wine compared to light champagne. The   
sensation of being drained and filled at the same time was too much to handle and slowly both   
Sam and Frodo slowed their drinking. Sam rolled off Frodo and fell asleep, completely sated.   
  
When he woke, he found that night had gone by and day had returned. He didn't need to open his   
eyes to tell this as his body had quickly learned to sense when it was safe to go out and when   
he needed to hide. Sam blinked sleepy eyes and looked around. He spotted Frodo, fast asleep and   
curled into Sam's body. The dark haired vampire didn't draw back from Sam, even when he touched   
Frodo's face.   
  
Sam's heart swelled with a pure joy and happiness that he hadn't felt in what seemed like a   
lifetime. Gently, he reached his head down and kissed Frodo on the lips. For a moment, Frodo   
was still but as he woke, he returned it. Sam broke the kiss and stroked Frodo's hair, "Good   
morning." He whispered.   
  
"It's morning?" Frodo asked quietly and laid his head on Sam's chest, "Feels like forever since   
I knew was day it was." He looked up at Sam with tears in his eyes, "I'm sorry Sam. I never   
should have pushed you away. I was so afraid of you and..."   
  
"Shh..." Sam kissed Frodo's brow, "There's nothing to explain."   
  
Frodo looked up into Sam's eyes, "I do though. I need you to know that... that I didn't push   
you away because I..." He closed his eyes, searching for the words that just wouldn't come,   
"I need you. I love you. I've always loved you. When you turned me I thought... I thought you   
did it out of spite... You had no choice."   
"That's not completely true Mr. Frodo..."   
  
"Sam." Frodo looked up and smiled sadly at Sam, "You followed me into Mordor... you kept me   
safe for as long as you could... you kissed me and tasted my blood... we're beyond Mr. Frodo   
now."   
  
"Frodo." Sam tried the word and found that though it was strange, it felt right as well, "I   
did have a choice. I could have left you to die after I drank from you. But I couldn't, Frodo.   
I love you too much to have let you die in Mordor, so far from the Shire and lost forever from   
me."   
  
"Oh, Sam." They kissed again, more insistent than before.  
  
Frodo suddenly drew back and gasped, "Merry! What have I done to Merry? Sam, I've killed him!"   
  
"He may not be dead yet," Sam tried to reassure Frodo, "And I could still turn..."   
  
"No!" Frodo stared at Sam in horror. "No! Promise me you won't turn him!"   
  
"But..."   
  
"Sam, if you care anything at all about me, you won't turn Merry! There are already two of us   
to suffer for eternity. There shouldn't be any more."   
  
"But if Merry dies, what about Pippin? They're our friends!"   
  
"I know. And if Merry dies, Pippin will hate me. But I would rather have Pippin hate me for   
killing Merry than have him hate me because I cursed Merry to become like us. Promise me that   
you won't turn him."   
  
"But..."   
  
"Please Sam! Promise me you won't turn Merry!"   
  
"I... I..." Sam looked into Frodo's face and felt his will crumbling, "I promise." He   
whispered.   
  
Frodo rested his head against Sam's chest, "Thank you Sam."   
  
Sam miserably caressed Frodo's face. He had Frodo, at last, but Pippin was going to lose Merry.   
All Sam could think about was Pippin holding Merry's pale form and weeping for his lost love.   
  
~fin~ 


	6. Small Deaths

TITLE: Small Deaths  
AUTHOR: Sanguinary  
RATING: PG 13  
CATEGORY: Horror, Vampires, Slash  
PARING: Sam/Frodo, Merry/Pippin  
SERIES: Barren  
SPOILERS: Return of the King  
SUMMARY: Sam's made a promise he can't afford to break. But Pippin won't just let Sam walk away.  
DEDICATION: To Singe, whose beta-reading skills have made the series better and whose suggestions have earned her a special paragraph.  
  
~  
  
As Frodo slept in the storage room below the House of Healing, Sam roamed the halls of the great castle. It was dangerous for Frodo to go anywhere beyond the storage room, lest he be seen by any of the many Men and Elves that roamed the city. Even though their minds were fixed on celebration, the sudden appearance of Frodo would raise dangerous, possibly deadly, questions that Sam could not deal with. And there were still loose ends to tie up in the form of Merry and Pippin. So though it was dangerous to leave the animalist Frodo alone, he couldn't stay there and wait for them to be discovered.  
As he walked, he brooded. He had promised Frodo that he wouldn't turn Merry but he couldn't stop thinking about it.  
  
If it had been Frodo dying and Pippin with the power to turn him, would Sam have let Pippin walk away because of a promise? Sam wasn't sure he would have even given Pippin the choice.  
  
Familiar sobbing interrupted Sam's thoughts and he followed the terrible sound, knowing where it would lead him. Uncertainly filled Sam's form as his thoughts turned to what would happen now. If Merry were to die, there would be questions and accusations. And the truth would come out, sooner than later. But making Merry into a monster wouldn't solve any problems.  
The sobbing stopped as Sam passed by an empty room. He paused and looked inside to see Pippin sitting with Merry cradled in his lap. Sam turned to walk away in order to have more time to think of what to do with the two. But before he could leave, Pippin spotted him.  
"Sam!" Pippin lay Merry down on the floor and ran after Sam. The younger Hobbit grabbed Sam's wrist and refused to let go, "I saw you and Frodo! I know what you are!"  
  
"Let go Pippin." Sam pulled his arm away but Pippin just held on tighter.  
  
"You're Mordor-spawn!" Pippin said the word as if it were a blessing instead of a curse.  
  
"Yes we are. And there's nothing good about that at all."  
  
"There is Sam! Don't you see! If you weren't Vampires, Merry would just die but now..."  
  
"But now what?"  
  
"He can still live! You can…change him! To be like you!"  
  
"No, Pippin. He can't live. Not even if I turned him, he wouldn't live. He wouldn't be the same Merry."  
  
"I don't care!"  
  
"He'd care! And when he woke up and you saw how terribly changed he is, you'd care. You'd hate me for making him into something else. And Merry could hate us both!"  
"Sam?" Confusion flashed over Pippin's face, "What are you talking about? All you need to do…"  
  
"I'll do nothing! I made a promise that I mean to keep! I changed Frodo and he's not the same as he was before!"  
  
"You still love him! I saw it in your face, even when you saw him attack Merry! Why can't you do the same for me?"  
  
"Because I can't!" Sam finally yanked his arm out of Pippin's grasp and fled down the hall. Behind him, Pippin's footsteps beat out a quick pace against the cobblestone as he chased after Sam.  
  
They quickly came to the end of the hall. Sam paused a moment, trying to decide which way to go and in that moment, Pippin jumped onto Sam's back. If it hadn't been for Sam's unnatural strength, he would have fallen to the floor instead of supporting both his and Pippin's weight. The larger Hobbit flailed, trying to get a grip on Sam's upper body. But all he managed to do was send Sam into a blind panic. Terror and hatred rose is Sam's mind, as the memory of Gollum jumping on Sam's own back came flooding to the front of his mind.  
  
He thrashed, trying to dislodge Pippin. All Sam succeeded in doing was getting Pippin to wrap his legs around Sam's waist and to dig his hands tighter into Sam's neck. The sensations of being strangled sent Sam into a frenzy, even though he no longer need to breath.  
  
Sam stepped backwards and slammed his back into the wall as hard as he could. There was a sharp cracking noise as Pippin's head hit the wall. With a groan of pain, Pippin loosened his grip and fell to the floor. Sam scrabbled away from Pippin's crumpled form, sucking in useless breath after useless breath.  
  
Pippin sat up and rubbed the back of his head in a dazed motion. When he pulled his hand away, Sam saw that it was coated with blood. "Oh," was the only reaction Pippin could muster at the sight of his bloody hand.  
  
The scent of fresh blood stretched across the hall, waking the beast inside of Sam's body. Fangs broke though his gums and he blinked as his vision was covered in a light red film. Pippin stared in open fascination at Sam's changing face.  
Sudden voices alerted Sam to the fact that they were fully exposed in the corridor. He stood to bolt. Grabbing Pippin he pulled him down the hall until they reached the room where Merry lay. He flew in, dragging Pippin behind, and locked the door. They knelt protectively beside Merry.  
  
The thud of Men's boots sounded though the corridor outside. Sam tried to concentrate to bring his face back to normal but Pippin's scent lingered in the air nearby. They waited, the tension mounting in the space between them. Finally, the Men left and the corridor was silent.  
Sam stood but Pippin was up in a flash, clinging to him. "Please Sam!" He begged, his voice thick with emotion, "Don't let Merry die. He's everything to me!"  
  
"Do you want Merry to exist as THIS?" Sam thrust his bestial face within inches of Pippin's own. "Is this what you want for him? For yourself?"  
Sam pushed Pippin against the nearest wall, pinning him. One hand stayed spread on Pippin's chest, holding him still. The other found it's way into Pippin's hair and, none to gently, he yanked Pippin's head to the side, exposing the length of Pippin's neck. Pippin's heart pounded, pumping blood in a torrent just beneath the skin, tempting Sam to sink his teeth into the unbroken skin. His tongue flicked out, licked the smooth skin and the beast delighted at Pippin's mixed whimper of pain and pleasure. Sharp teeth brushed over Pippin's neck, pressing into the skin and breaking the surface. Lively blood, an explosion of flavour and life, leaked into Sam's mouth. The beast urged him to tear deeper into Pippin's skin but Sam exercised the little control he had and brought his head back. "Do you really want this?" Sam whispered into Pippin's ear, "Do you want me to tear you open? Do you want me to tear Merry open?"  
Pippin's only reply was a whimper. Sam released Pippin and watched as he slid down the wall, ending on the floor. Sam turned to leave the room and collect himself but he found Pippin clinging to his leg.  
"At least he'll have a chance, Sam! If you leave him now, he'll die for sure. Let MERRY make the decision about how he lives or dies. Just give him a chance!"  
"Pippin, I swore I'd never turn another! I promised Frodo!"  
  
"I'll die without him," Pippin started to cry, "I can't let him go. I love him."  
The words hit Sam like a hammer blow, echoing the words he had said to Frodo not less than an hour ago. How could he dare turn Frodo for his own jealous reasons and then deny Pippin? A muffled cry tore its way out of Sam's throat. "Fine," He said, broken by Pippin's plea. "Fine Pippin, I'll turn him."  
  
Sam's soul began to bleed again. There was no possible way that Frodo would ever forgive him for this. But one look at Pippin's eyes and Sam knew he couldn't reject him, or Merry. They were closer than friends. Sam wouldn't be able to look at Frodo without seeing Pippin's desperate face and he feared the resentment he would inevitably feel.  
  
Decided, he bent down and leaned over Merry, staring at the brutal marks Frodo had made in his neck. Sam resisted the carnal urge to tear them open again and picked up Merry's wrist instead. He searched the surface of the pale skin until he found an artery, weakly pulsing. Sam lowered his head and bit in quickly.  
Merry's blood slowly filled Sam's mouth, the once bubbly taste now fading as the container it resided in died. He tried to drink carefully as to not cause Merry any more harm. The irony of that thought was not lost on Sam.  
Merry was already drained from Frodo's previous feeding so it didn't take Sam long to bring him to the brink of death. Sam wasn't certain if it was necessary for him to feed from Merry as well in order to turn him but if he was going to turn Merry, he wasn't about to take any chances. Pippin watched all of this in quiet horror.  
  
Sam let go of Merry's arm and slashed at his own wrist with his sharp teeth. The raw wound stung as he pressed it to Merry's mouth and waited. The dying Hobbit suddenly sucked gently at the blood, taking in three or four mouthfuls before his heart stopped and he truly died. Pippin stared at Merry's unmoving form and began to wail.  
  
Sam reached out and gathered the younger but larger Hobbit into his arms. "Shh…" Sam rocked Pippin like a small child, "Wait until nightfall. He'll come back to you then."  
  
"He's dead!" Pippin sobbed, "What will I do without him?"  
  
"Just wait. When the sun sets, he'll return."  
  
"Promise?"  
  
"I promise." That promise, at least, Sam knew he could keep.  
  
The day passed slowly in the small room. Pippin soon stopped crying and spent most of his time staring at Merry's still body. They spoke seldom, mostly Pippin asking questions about what it was like to be a vampire. Sam's answers were curt. He couldn't stop thinking of Frodo's reaction when he saw what Sam had done.  
  
Sometime during the course of the day, Sam fell into sleep. When he awoke, he found Pippin sleeping against him. The gentle thump of his friend's living heart had lulled Sam back into his vampire face and it took him a few moments to return to normal. He wondered if there was any way that he would ever be able to fit into normal life again. No, he decided, it would be impossible.  
  
The sun set, waking the beast within in earnest. He stirred and shook Pippin awake. Quietly, both of them rose to their feet and stood over the still figure of Merry. They didn't have long to wait.  
  
Merry's eyes snapped open and darted about the room until they came to rest on Pippin. "Pip?" He croaked and sat up. Pippin gave a cry of joy and embraced Merry.  
  
"Oh, you were almost gone forever, Merry!" He rained kisses down on Merry's face and hands, crying for joy as he did so, "I thought I'd lost you. Don't ever leave me again!"  
  
It took a moment for Merry to comprehend what had been said. Sam remembered the sluggish feeling of waking. Of course, the fact that Sam had been buried may have changed the way he woke but from the confused expression on Merry's face, Sam thought that maybe it wasn't that different. "You thought I would leave you? Never… Lovely, I'll never leave you." Merry smiled strangely and Sam found himself not liking the look of that smile.  
  
He stood up to leave the two in peace when he saw a shadow in the doorway. Sam turned and saw Frodo staring speechless. His heart broke as he caught the look on Frodo's face, just before he turned and ran. The already cheerless sight of Merry and Pippin's reunion turned even bitterer.  
  
Sadly, Sam wandered out into the corridor and back towards the windowless room where he slept, his heart breaking more with every lonely step.  
  
~fin~  
  



	7. In The Shade

_**DONE! WHEE!**_  
TITLE: In The Shade  
AUTHOR: Sanguinary  
COPYRIGHT: August 29, 2002  
DISTRIBUTION: Anklebitters. Ask if you want it anywhere else.  
RATING: PG 13  
CATEGORY: Horror, Vampires, Slash, AU  
SPOILERS: TTT and RotK  
DISCLAIMER: None of J.R.R. Tolkien's characters belong to me  
FEEDBACK: If you liked it, drop me a line: Sanguinary_515@hotmail.com  
SUMMARY: Merry isn't right. Sam worries. Pippin pays the price.  
  
  
  
  
  
Days passed as they always had in Middle Earth. Sam found other things to keep his mind off his betrayal of Frodo. He visited often with Merry, watching the young vampire as he learned to adapt to his new world, and Pippin. Pippin seemed to find himself the odd one out, being as he was the only of their tight group that still had a pulse. This had led to some uncomfortable situations when Merry and Sam were forced to feed. Sam chose to eat farther away from the castle and prey on small animals. Merry, however, was content to feed in the castle, killing the larger hunting hounds and cats. Pippin tried to hide his disgust at the feeding but Sam could always smell it radiating off Pippin in waves, no matter how hard he tried to hide it.  
  
Frodo rarely strayed from the storage room where he slept. Sam caught glimpses of him every once in a while as Frodo hunted in the city. The sudden explosion of missing and mutilated pets had the guards working twice as hard to keep the city safe. Luckily for the Hobbits, the Men rarely paid attention to their going about through the city. But all it would take was one mistake to get them all killed.  
  
Which was why Sam was keeping an eye on Merry.  
  
Something queer had happened when Merry changed over. Something wrong. Sam first got a glimpse of this when he encountered Merry in the garden two nights after his transformation.  
  
Merry had been sitting on one of the marble benches, a tiny bird in his hands, "Everything's different." He had remarked quietly to Sam, "Realer. Newer."  
  
Sam remembered staring at the sky and thinking how strange the moon seemed now. Its pale glow had replaced the golden warmth of the sun and Sam missed that light dearly, wishing he could see it one more time. But that way led towards death. Though he no longer had anything to exist for, he still couldn't bring himself to end the mockery of his existence yet. "You get used to it."  
  
"Do you?" Merry had stared eagerly into Sam's face, "You shouldn't. It should always feel like this with everything so fresh and bright." Merry suddenly crushed the bird in his hand. It screamed, a last, shrill cry for help. Blood oozed, streaming down Merry's knuckles. He licked it off, obviously enjoying the taste of blood and the bird's pain.  
  
Sam had watched, disgusted and yet hungry. Not for the first time, he wondered if the path he had chosen had been the right one. Would things have gone better if he had left Frodo to die at the base of Mount Doom? Merry would not have become this if he had…  
  
No. He couldn't have let Frodo die then, he still couldn't let him die, even knowing what his choice had come to. Sam loves Frodo so much that it is no longer an emotion. Its just part of Sam, like his hands and feet.  
  
Like his fangs and red eyes. For better or worse, it's part of who he is.  
  
But he still couldn't help but think he made a mistake with Merry. He was proved right this night.  
  
He had been coming back from his feed when the overwhelming scent of blood smacked him in the face. The scent was tantalizingly familiar, putting an edge on the mild hunger that Sam had been feeling. He knew the scent as if it were his own.  
  
"Pippin."  
  
Sam ran towards the aroma of freshly spilt blood, hoping that Frodo hadn't lost himself to the hunger again. There were Men in the city who were beginning to become suspicious of the Hobbits. Merry's strange behaviour coupled with Sam's own inability to go out into the light had caused Aragorn to take another look at his little friends.  
  
The scent grew stronger the closer he came to the twined hedges that marked the entrance into the garden. Sam looked down the garden path and spotted two familiar shapes locked in an embrace.  
  
They looked like a pair of lovers taking comfort in the darkness. But Sam could tell that the low murmurs and heavy breathing were not those of love. Sam rushed towards them. "Merry Brandybuck!" Sam shouted, shoving the vampire away from his gasping cousin. "What have you done?" Sam cried angrily and slapped Merry's face.  
  
Merry hissed in pain and leapt at Sam. Sam easily dodged the larger Hobbit, "You may be bigger than me, Merry, but I'm still more than a match for you. You're not used to your new body. I've lived in mine for near six months."  
  
Merry tried once more but Sam tripped him up, sending him crashing into the cold stone floor. While Merry groaned, Sam walked over to Pippin to see how much damage had been done.  
  
Pippin's wrists and throat were covered in bite marks, some shallow, others deep. He was still awake but looked in too much pain to do much of anything. There wasn't much blood left in Pippin's veins. His blue eyes fixed on Sam and pleaded silently for help.  
  
Merry rose unsteadily to his feet and pushed his body between Sam and Pippin, "I tried to make Pippin one of us but... I don't know how you made me. And Pippin wouldn't tell me. I know he saw you make me but nothing I did would make him speak."  
  
"Trust a Brandybuck to test the waters with both feet." Sam looked at Merry with disgust, "You may have killed him forever if I hadn't come in and you may still if you don't let me near him. Stand aside Merry, I'll not stand by and watch another of my friends die. I'm damned already, I may as well finish what I started."  
  
Sam stepped towards Merry and this time Merry moved quickly out of his way. Sam crouched down beside Pippin and leaned Pippin's head back. The youngest Hobbit was dazed. Sam opened his wrist and pressed it to Pippin's pale lips.  
  
Pippin gulped greedily from Sam's bleeding wound. Soon, Sam was forced to stop him, lest he be drained empty. Merry paced back and forth the entire time but never came close, afraid of Sam's wrath.  
  
Sam lifted Pippin and carried him into the castle. Merry followed, snarling like an angry house pet but Sam paid him no mind. "Where are you going with Pippin?" Merry asked indignantly.  
  
"I'm taking him someplace safe to sleep the day away. As for you, I suggest you get back to the hole where you sleep."  
  
"I'm coming with Pippin."  
  
"No you're not. He's going to rise without you hovering over him. Now go or I'll make sure that Pippin doesn't rise at all."  
  
"You don't have that power." But Merry sounded uncertain.  
  
"I do so, Meriadoc Brandybuck, and I have the power to kill you as well if I wished. Now get out of my sight before I kill you sooner rather than later!" There was anger in his words, anger disguising the pain he felt saying them. They had once been great friends, Hobbits who understood each other. Merry had been there when Sam had longed for Frodo, had given understanding and helped him put his feelings where they couldn't be seen. Sam had been there through Merry's realization of his feelings for Pippin and had guided Merry on the path with Pippin that Sam had been unable to follow with Frodo. But now, there was a gap that neither of them could bridge.  
  
Merry snarled once more but retreated down the hall, disappearing into the darkness. With a sigh of frustration, Sam walked to his own hideout, far from the assigned bedrooms given to them by Aragorn as it wouldn't do for any of the Men to be questioning why the windows were covered with heavy drapes and why the scent of death lingered. The small stone room had been a bedroom at one time and, with some blankets Sam had scavenged, he had turned it into his hideout. Sam sat on the blankets, nestling Pippin's head in his lap.  
  
Pippin was slow to die. Whether that was due to Merry's botched attempt at turning him or whether it was because of the strong life force within Pippin, Sam wasn't sure. But he held Pippin's head and tried to reassure the young Hobbit, not even a full adult yet. Never to be a full adult.  
  
And, as Pippin drew his last breath and died in Sam's arms, something within Sam flashed. The epiphany hit hard and fast, leaving Sam gasping for air as he realized what he had to do. He stood and wrapped Pippin in the blankets. "Sorry, Pippin." Sam picked up a sharp object beside his bed, "Forgive me for not teaching you what you need to know." He pressed a kiss against Pippin's forehead and left the room.  
  
Sam walked through the corridors with a purpose, his eyes fixed on something only he could see. Determined, he pushed open the door to the storage room where Frodo slept.  
  
One look inside revealed that Frodo was out, possibly hunting. Dawn was coming fast so all he had to do was wait.  
  
It wasn't long until he saw a shadow appear at the hole beneath what had been Merry's bed in the House of Healing. Frodo dropped down through it and landed on his bed of rags. It was only then that he noticed the intruder.  
  
"Sam!" Frodo hissed and turned to bolt.  
  
"Wait! Please don't go. Not yet."  
  
"What are you here to do? Apologize?" Frodo's voice was stronger than before and his words were strung together in the proper fashion, "No apologies Sam. You made your choice."  
  
"I know. And that's why I need you to do it." Stepping forward, he pressed the sharp weapon into Frodo's palm.  
  
"What's this about?" Frodo looked at the wooden stake Sam had placed in his hand.  
  
"You killed Gollum in the Dead Marshes." Sam unbuttoned his shirt and let it fall open. "I want you to do the same to me."  
  
Frodo looked incredulously at Sam, "This makes no sense."  
  
"I killed you, Mr. Frodo. I drained you and made you into what I knew you'd never accept being. I broke my promise to you. I did a lot of wrong and I can't apologize for it because you won't accept it... I need you to do this for me, for us. If you destroy me, I'll have paid my debt to you. I know you hate me and I can't stand to go on with you feeling that way."  
  
"I won't, Sam."  
  
"You have to. I did what I promised I wouldn't do." Sam touched Frodo's shoulder, dreading what was to come but knowing it was necessary, "I need you to do it. I can't ask for forgiveness but I can ask you to do this."  
  
"There's no way that I'll kill you."  
  
"Why not? You hate me."  
  
"I don't hate you, Sam."  
  
"Then what do you feel?" Sam could feel his frustration mounting. "All I know is that I betrayed you and now you hate me for what I did. But if you don't hate me, then what do you feel?"  
  
"I don't... I can't..." Frodo tried to find the words but they wouldn't come and he dropped the stake onto the floor. "I won't hurt you. I don't hate you but I can't forgive you. Not yet."  
  
Sam knew his disappointment must have shown on his face because Frodo wrapped his smaller hands around Sam's larger ones. "Give me time. I know you didn't have a choice. But you broke your promises twice and it hurts. It hurts me. It hurts us all."  
  
"I'm sorry." Sam bit the inside of his lip, trying to keep the tears away, "I've been so selfish..."  
  
Frodo shook his head, 'Sam, you know that's not true. If there's anyone less selfish than you, I haven't met him yet. And I love you because of it." He kissed Sam's lips and pressed their foreheads together, "I could never stop loving you, no matter what happens."  
  
The tears that Sam had been trying vainly to hold back came loose and streaked down his cheeks.  
  
Suddenly the door burst open and Gimli leapt in, brandishing his axe. Legolas, with an arrow notched in his bow, at his back. They stared in open amazement at Frodo, who had been presumed dead, but their faces hardened as they noticed the bloody tears trailing down Sam's face. Evidently Aragorn was acting on his suspicions.  
  
"Mordor-spawn." Gimli hissed.  
  
Sam's hopes burst as he looked up at the wooden arrow pointing towards his chest. "On your feet." Legolas demanded.  
  
Frodo and Sam had no choice but to comply. As they walked out of the room, Sam wondered what would happen to them. And what would Pippin do when he woke alone?  
  
It seemed the harder Sam tried to make things right, the more they became terribly wrong.  
  
~fin~  



	8. Breakdown

TITLE: Breakdown  
AUTHOR: Sanguinary  
COPYRIGHT: August 28, 2002  
DISTRIBUTION: Anklebiters. Ask if you want it anywhere else.  
RATING: PG 13  
CATEGORY: Horror, Vampires, Slash, AU  
SPOILERS: TTT and RotK  
DISCLAIMER: None of J.R.R. Tolkien's characters belong to me  
FEEDBACK: If you liked it, drop me a line: Sanguinary_515@hotmail.com  
SUMMARY: Frodo and Sam are captured. Merry and Pippin are missing. The end has come.  
AN: Finished at last! I loved writing this series but I would have liked to have gotten it writen faster. But at least I finished it with a bang. A big thank you to everyone who read and encouraged this series. Especially to Singe, who's input and Beta'ing skills did wonders to what would have been an easily forgetable series. And though this series is done, this won't be the last from me.  
  
  
  
Sam paced back and forth in his and Frodo's makeshift prison. Since they were small enough to squeeze through the bars of the average Minas Tirith cell they had been placed inside a cage made for savage animals and locked into a dungeon. Frodo sat in the corner furthest from the cage door, his knees drawn up and his chin resting on his chest.  
  
Hunger radiated from both vampires. Sam couldn't understand how none of the Men in the room recognized the sheer want burning inside the two Hobbits. They hadn't fed in two days and if they didn't eat soon, they would both revert to the animalistic stage that Frodo had been in less than a week ago. Already, Frodo was slipping back to the beast-state.  
For Sam, he felt he was revisiting the nightmare of Mordor. He remembered the uncertainty of when food would come. The danger of light catching him unawares. The unwavering temptation of Frodo's living blood so close but so forbidden. The memories were overwhelming torture and the only thing that kept him from snapping was his constant pacing. He had quickly discovered that the cage was six paces long and would not grow longer, no matter how many times he tread back and forth.  
  
Sam knew little of what was happening beyond those snippets he gained from eavesdropping on the conversation of two of the guards. Apparently, a trial was deciding the fate of Sam and Frodo, whether they should be spared and kept alive in the dungeons for the rest of their days or whether it would be better to kill them and get it over with. Neither solution appealed much to Sam but there wasn't a thing he could do about it. There was no word on Merry or Pippin's whereabouts. Sam could only hope that they would not be found.  
  
He heard that one reason for the hold up was because of the lateness of Men from Ithilien. They had come to testify against Sam, bringing along with them proof that the vampires had killed Men on their journey to Mordor. Sam had killed, but only to stay alive and to keep Frodo safe. He had not known that the Man he killed and drank from had been under the rule of Faramir and was an ally. That did not seem to matter to the judges of the trial. Sam was damned for tasting the blood of another, though he had no choice in the matter. He was so sorry for the man, still. Had he only known…  
  
Frodo was caught between awareness and the feral nature that took him when he was without food. His out-of-focus eyes tore at Sam's heart. Tired and hungry, he sat down beside Frodo, resting his body against the cold bars. Frodo looked up and collapsed against him, laying his head across Sam's lap. Sam stroked his hair. Starving and exhausted, it didn't take long for them to soothe each other into a dreamless sleep.  
  
Sam woke to the sound of a rapid heartbeat, close against him. He opened his eyes and found himself staring down a huge dungeon rat. The beady-eyed black monster was seated on Sam's chest and appeared to be trying to eat the remains of his ragged shirt. Sam stayed perfectly still, though he felt as if his skin were about to crawl off his body. Then he snapped his hand up and grabbed the hairy vermin.  
  
It screamed shrilly before Sam broke its neck. He felt his face changing to his beast features, his eyes turning blood red. The fangs grew with a slight pain and he brought the rat to his mouth. He was starving and, though rat blood was repulsive, he dug his fangs into its neck and drank eagerly.  
  
He would have drained it dry, had it not been for a moan from Frodo. Sam's master stared hungrily at him, licking his pale lips. It took some effort on Sam's part in order to pull the rodent from his mouth and offer it to Frodo.  
  
Frodo took the gift and bit into it, not waiting for his fangs to form. Sam tried not to let the image of his friend eating a dead rat disgust him but he was revolted as fleas abandoned the cooling corpse to travel down Frodo's fingers. It was easier to watch Frodo eat when he was wearing his monstrous mask. Sam could pretend that it was the beast eating. It was much harder to delude himself when faced with Frodo's plain hobbit features, covered in blood.  
There was the grinding of steel against steel as the iron door to the hobbit's dungeon was opened, revealing a number of humans, all armed and deadly. Sam forced his features to turn normal again as they strode into the room. "The King wishes to see you." The leader of the men spit out with disgust.  
  
Sam stood, pulling Frodo with him. Frodo dropped the rat, its blood had sated him somewhat and he followed docilely, only sending longing looks towards some of the men whose hearts beat a bit quicker with fear. Sam kept a hand on Frodo's shoulder, calming his friend while keeping him out of trouble as he was not old enough of a vampire to fully be able to control his beast. All that had helped Sam become so comfortable with his baser needs so quickly was the fact that if he were to lose control in Mordor, he would have killed his love, his Frodo.  
  
The walk through the corridors brought Sam and Frodo by the storage area that Sam had left Pippin in. Sam listened but could not hear any sounds from  
behind the door. He prayed that meant Pippin had found his way out and was far away from Minas Tirith, hopefully safe with Merry. Sam was still angry at Merry for forcing him to turn Pippin but Merry was a part of Sam, literally blood of his blood now. As was Pippin. A connection that was closer than friendship and as binding as family. If Sam were to hear that either had been killed, he would make sure that whoever did it would pay.  
They reached the throne room. Gathered inside were many Men and Elves that both Frodo and Sam had met on their journey and reckoned to be friends. He spotted Gimli and Legolas but the other prominent Big People were a mystery to him. Two blond humans, male and female siblings Sam guessed, stared stonily at them. Beside the woman stood another man looking so much like Boromir that Sam knew he had to be Faramir, the warrior's brother. Next to Faramir was Elrond, his daughter, Arwen, beside him, both quietly watching everything.  
  
But on all their faces was hatred and fear for the creatures that Sam and Frodo had unwillingly become. Aragorn, a grim and bleak expression on his face, was seated on his throne with Gandalf at his right hand. Gandalf looked neither approving nor disapproving of the two captives. Sam took some comfort in that.  
  
Sam stood proudly before Aragorn. He knew that he might not leave the throne room with his heart in his chest but there was no way he would ever let himself despair. Not now when Frodo needed him more than ever.  
  
The King stood and walked towards the Hobbits. Gimli and Legolas followed him. They towered above the two small figures but Sam refused to flinch in the shadows of the ones who had been beloved to him.  
  
Frodo whimpered, his hand seeking Sam's for comfort. Sam grasped it and squeezed gently to reassure him. An emotion that might have been pity flashed quickly over Legolas and Gimli's features but there was no emotion on Aragorn's face. There was nothing but cold judgment.  
  
"Frodo. Samwise." His glace swung from one face to another, "What have you become?"  
Sam returned Aragorn's look, "What we had no choice in bein'."  
  
"It was Gollum, wasn't it?" Gandalf spoke for the first time, stepping out of the crowd.  
  
Sam nodded, "It was. He was drinking from Frodo when we traveled though the dead marshes. I tried to put a stop to it but I wasn't strong enough to fight him off and I paid the price. When I rose, I fought Gollum and Frodo killed him."  
  
Slowly, Sam told the tale of how they had traveled though Mordor and how he had fought the hunger until he gave in to save Frodo at the base of Mount Doom. He said nothing about turning Merry or Pippin but neither denied that Merry's sickness had been caused by Frodo's hunger. As he spoke, the attitude of the crowd changed from fear and hatred to pity mixed with revulsion.  
  
When he came to the end of it, Sam looked up at Aragorn again, "So that's the long and short of it all. There was no choice in our bein'. There was just the bein'."  
  
Aragorn was quiet a moment, deliberating. Finally he spoke, "I understand this was not your choice. We are grateful that you destroyed the Ring, despite everything, but you must understand. You have been killing in this city and that is something that I cannot allow. Yes, so far, only animals have been harmed in the White City but you may soon turn to Men for you needs as you have done before. We cannot allow you to spread this disease. I am sorry, my old friends, but it must be this way."  
  
With the slightest motion from him, four soldiers stepped forward, unsheathing their blades that shone in the blazing torchlight that lit the hall. Aragorn walked back to his throne, Gimli and Legolas following him. Apparently, though Aragorn was willing to shed the blood of his friends, he was not willing to shed his own.  
  
Sam pushed Frodo behind him, protecting his master. They were rushed from all sides and Frodo cried out sharply as the soldiers pulled him and Sam apart. Sam was slammed onto the stone floor, forcing his features out. He caught a glimpse of Frodo, thrown to the floor in front of Aragorn.  
  
"NOOO!" Sam fought with all his strength, biting and tearing at anything he could get his fangs and hands on. The soldiers fell back, only to be replaced by others who didn't fear the vampire. Hands caught him and stretched him out immobile on the floor. Sam watched one of the Men approach, sword upraised, ready to sever his head from his body.  
  
Sam defiantly looked up at the blade, refusing to close his eyes and wince. He would face death with more courage than he had faced life.  
  
With a crash the soldier suddenly fell to the floor, his sword spinning out of his hand. On his back stood Pippin, his face fully transformed into the bestial red eyes and fangs of the cursed. Pippin leapt off the soldier's back and landed on the floor in front of Sam, snarling at the soldiers that still surrounded them. "Don't you dare touch him!"  
  
Aragorn stood, waving the men to the side, and as the soldiers backed away, Pippin turned around and helped Sam to his feet. The younger Hobbit smiled, his features melting back into normality. "Are you alright?"  
  
Sam nodded, speechless. He couldn't help but stare at the scars that were all over Pippin's neck and arms, proof of Merry's botched attempts at transforming Pippin. But Pippin seemed almost proud of them, wearing them as if they were a reward.  
  
There was a high-pitched keening noise from Frodo, still held captive by the Men. Sam didn't stop to think about what he was doing as he walked up to the fallen soldier on the floor. The man stirred once when Sam lifted him into a sitting position but didn't dare move again. Pippin realized what Sam was doing and joined him, standing on the other side of their victim. Sam nuzzled his face into the Man's neck, his fangs just barely above the skin.  
  
"I suggest you put Frodo down. Otherwise, we won't be the only dead things in this room." Pippin smiled, the words he spoke made even more threatening by how normal Pippin looked when the beast was contained.  
  
Aragorn nodded to the soldiers and they set their prisoner down. Frodo immediately ran to Sam. Pippin and Sam released the Man and stood back as he scrabbled over the stone floor to rejoin his companions.  
  
"It appears you did not tell us the whole truth, Sam." Aragorn stared coldly at Pippin.  
"Why would I have told you about Pip? So you could hunt him down and kill him too?" Sam snorted, "If you believed that I would do that, you're naught but a ninny-hammer as my Gaffer would say."  
  
Something moved beside Aragorn. Sam turned his head and saw the arrow as it flew from Legolas' bow, thrumming as it went. Sam stepped to the side and smoothly caught the arrow by the shaft. The crowd gasped as one and a sickly look of shock spread down the Elf's face. Pippin laughed as Sam handed him the arrow, "A nice shot, Legolas. But you would have been better off not making it." Legolas obviously knew nothing of the nature of Mordor-spawn, as he called them.  
  
"I agree with you there, Pippin." Sam took the arrow back and threw it at the ceiling high above him. The arrow flew straight and stuck in the very centre of the roof.  
  
While the hall reacted with shock, Pippin leaned against Sam. He whispered, "When I count to three, get Frodo and yourself down on the floor."  
  
"What?"  
  
"Don't question, just do!"  
  
Pippin stepped around Sam, ruffling Frodo's hair as he passed him. He bowed mockingly to Aragorn. Death had not affected Pippin much. It seemed to have lightened his spirit, making him more of the old Pippin who had been a carefree boy in the Shire. "King Aragorn, I thank you for your hospitality but I believe we've worn out our welcome. So, I say farewell for both my companions and myself."  
  
"You will not leave this castle intact." Aragorn drew his own sword.  
  
"One." Pippin smiled coldly, his hand slipping into his pocket. "Two… three!"  
  
Sam grabbed Frodo and yanked him to the ground as Pippin pulled a small red ball out of his pocket and threw it into a nearby torch. Sam instantly recognized it as one of Gandalf's fireworks. He clamped one hand over Frodo's eyes and shut tight his own. He felt Pippin drop down beside him, burrowing his head into his back as a flash of light blinded the room. Screams echoed from all corners as the Big People panicked. Sam pulled Frodo and Pippin to their feet and they ran as fast as they could, leaving the throne room behind and shooting into the corridor.  
  
They ran though the twisting halls and the pounding of boots followed them. Slipping into an empty room they waiting in desperate silence as the shouts of Men sounded through the corridor. Sam and Pippin pressed Frodo between them, shielding him from any threat that may appear.  
  
When the noise died down, the Hobbits cautiously emerged into the hall. Before they could flee to a safer stop, Aragorn, evidently following a passageway only he knew of, appeared and blocked their path to their absolute shock. In his hand he held Anduril, "I cannot allow you to leave."  
  
Sam pushed Frodo out of the Aragorn's reach and met Pippin's eyes. Pippin smiled, the blue of his eyes melting into blood red as his beast emerged. Sam's face changed as well, matching Pippin's visage. They turned as one, ready to do whatever was needed to keep Frodo safe. "Come on then, Longshanks!" Sam snarled, "Let's have at it!"  
  
Aragorn's face turned furious and he raised his sword to strike. Then Sam leapt back as Aragorn was suddenly thrown forward by the weight of a Hobbit striking him in the back of his knees. As he fell, he revealed Merry, grinning most unpleasantly.  
  
Sam saw his chance and grasped Aragorn's sword arm in his tiny hands. He pushed on the elbow joint, listening to it strain under the force of his unnatural strength and then snap as it broke. Aragorn opened his mouth to howl in pain but Pippin was there quicker than any mortal eye could follow, pushing the Man's jaw shut and sinking his teeth into the neck with one smooth motion.  
  
The scent of fresh blood overwhelmed the starving Sam and he brought his teeth down on the other side of Aragorn's neck. Pippin growled at Sam, more welcoming than angry and wound his free hand into Sam's hair.  
  
Frodo appeared behind the kneeling King, finding room for his own teeth at the crook of the shoulder. Sam's free hands found their way to the Hobbits on either side of him, one sliding over Pippin's back and the other tangling into Frodo's hair. Out of the corner of his eye, he spotted Merry joining them, his head resting against Pippin's and his fangs buried into the soft flesh of the other shoulder.  
  
They drank deeply until their cheeks turned bright pink and their dead forms seemed to throb with life. Sam could feel Aragorn weakening but he didn't care. He wanted nothing more than to destroy the callous man and all his causes but, surprisingly enough, it was Merry who pulled back and pushed the others away. "Can't kill him."  
  
"What are you doing?" Pippin stared at Merry in surprise.  
  
"We kill him, we'll never get out of here. We let him live and they'll lose time trying to decide whether he's one of us or not. And…besides…its murder. Animals are one thing but Aragorn…he was our friend once…"  
  
"Merry, that's the first rational thing you've said since I turned you." Sam gasped. And the first merciful, he thought, relief flooding his soul. Merry, his friend, was still with them. Sam turned to Pippin, who was looking back at Merry, smiling. "He's right. We need to hide him somewhere."  
  
"I know just the place." Pippin's cocky grin was all Sam needed to see to know that everything would work out.  
  
Sam and Pippin hid Aragorn's unconscious body in the empty storage room where Pippin had risen not two days ago. Frodo watched quietly from where he leaned against the wall. Merry paced anxiously, glancing to Pippin every so often to make sure he was where he should be.  
  
As Frodo's hunger had been sated, his sanity had returned to him and his eyes shone bright with intelligence. Sam idly wondered why they were so different as vampires. Pippin was himself, as was Sam. But Frodo and Merry were completely changed, their entire personalities dependant on the nature of the beast inside.  
  
"Can we go now?" Merry was agitated and glanced up and down the corridor, "They're still looking for us!"  
  
"But where will we go?" Frodo rose to his feet, "We can't stay in the White City but there's no where else we can escape to before daylight."  
  
"I say we head for Rohan. There's horses there, enough to feed on for years and years without being detected." Merry closed his eyes, obviously imagining a feast of horse blood.  
  
Pippin shook his head, "We wouldn't be any safer there. The Men would hunt us down. I say we head for the Mines of Moria. We could hide in there forever."  
  
"But there's nothing to eat." Frodo looked thoughtful, "We need places to hide from the Sun, but we need creatures to feed on. And I cannot think of any forest that would welcome us for long."  
  
"What about…" Sam opened his mouth to speak but stopped as he was thrust into shadows by a figure blocking the torchlight from the hallway.  
  
Gandalf towered overtop the Hobbits. Sam drew out his sword, standing in front of Frodo, Merry and Pippin, "You can do what you want with me but you'll not harm a hair of the ones I made."  
  
"You made them all?" Gandalf seemed almost surprised by this.  
  
"I did." Sam waved his sword towards Gandalf's kneecaps, "And I'll cut you down before I'll see them hurt."  
  
"So you plan to cut me down, Samwise Gamgee?" Gandalf looked coldly at the Hobbit.  
  
"Only if need be, sir. Otherwise I'd rather not kill anyone. I've had enough of death."  
  
"As have I." Gandalf leaned his staff against the wall, sparing a glance in the direction of the storage room, and smiled at the vampires, "I had feared that all the goodness would have been lost from you but it appears not. You may not be the Hobbits that I took out of the Shire but the creatures you have become are still good and righteous. Hurry, you must go before they find you."  
  
The cursed walking party glanced at each other with relief. "But where?" Pippin looked up at Gandalf, "They'll hunt us wherever we go."  
  
"There's one place they'll never find you. One place where you may live happily. Return to the Shire and spend your years in peace. Aragorn would never imagine that you had actually gone home so you should be safe from him. But if I ever hear of strange creatures causing deaths in the Shire, I will come and destroy you myself."  
  
"I promise not to let anything happen to the Shire. And that's one promise that I know I can keep."  
  
Gandalf knelt down on the floor and gathered them into a hug, "I will miss you all."  
  
"And we'll miss you." Pippin smiled cheekily, "And tell the rest of the Fellowship to stick their swords up their…"  
  
"Pippin…" Sam's tone was warning but there was no disguising the smile on his face.  
  
"Nose? And rotate them until they pierce that part of their brain that's making them forget that we saved the day. We saved them all."  
  
Gandalf laughed, "I'll try to remember that, Master Took. Now go. Shadowfax waits in the stables. He will take you to safety." Pippin nodded, waved, and rushed down the hall with Merry and Frodo following close behind. Sam lingered a moment. "What is it, Sam?"  
  
"I kept my promise."  
  
"Your promise?"  
  
"The one you made me promise when we started this journey. 'Don't you leave him, Samwise Gamgee.' And I didn't. I never left him."  
  
"I know, Sam." Gandalf smiled sadly, "I can only wish that you had never been turned by Gollum's bite. But a wish is just that, nothing but a hope that has already faded. But keep your promises to me."  
  
"I haven't had much good luck with the promises I've made to anyone else. But I know I can keep yours. I won't let anything harm them. And I won't let them harm anything."  
  
"I know." Gandalf stood, looking fondly at Sam, "Now go. They're waiting for you."  
  
"I won't forget this. Thank you, Gandalf." Sam took one more look at Gandalf before sprinting down the halls to the stables.  
  
He was forced to hide a couple times as Men came thundering down the halls, fruitlessly searching for the Halflings. But it didn't take long for Sam to reach the stables and meet up with his childer. They were gathered around Shadowfax's stable, peering over the divider wall.  
  
Sam opened the gate and jumped onto Shadowfax's back. The horse rolled his eyes in a panic but he didn't move, terrified of the creature on his back. Frodo was next to jump on. He slid as close as he could to Sam, wrapping his arms around Sam's waist and pressing his face into the strong back.  
  
Pippin easily leapt astride and helped guide Merry. Sam gripped the horse's mane and hissed into its ear. Shadowfax shrieked and took off into the night, heading in the direction that all of them knew to be home.  
  
Frodo murmured happily against Sam's back and Pippin began to sing a song that all of them knew well. Sam joined in, smiling happily for the first time since they began the quest.  
  
"The road goes ever on and on…"  
  
~Fin~  
  



End file.
